New short film-Sustainable livelihoods in the Volta delta, Ghana

by Katharine Vincent

The Volta delta in Ghana is a challenging place to live. Since the construction of the Volta dam at Akosombo, the regulation of downstream river flows have affected fish spawning and migration patterns, and the reduced likelihood of flooding affects the suitability of floodplain land for agriculture. Mangrove cultivation and harvesting is being promoted by the government as a sustainable livelihood for delta inhabitants. The wood is traded, used for construction, and popular for smoking fish. A new short film, produced by Klaus Wohlmann with the DECCMA team, outlines this activity.

Mangrove forestry (photo: Klaus Wohlmann)

New CARIAA brief on migration in climate change hotspots

Mainstreaming climate change into district plans and budgets in Ghana

by Prosper Adiku

DECCMA used a dissemination and validation workshop to also build capacity on mainstreaming climate change. The workshop was attended by district officials, traditional leaders and community representatives from nine districts in the Volta delta of Ghana.

Winfred Nelson of the National Development Planning Commission (NDPC) and the DECCMA governance team presented on how to factor climate change into issues into planning and budgeting processes during the preparation of the short-term (2-year) Medium Term Development Plans at the district and municipal assembly levels.

Ghana meeting (photo: Klaus Wohlmann)

The ethos of the workshop was participatory, with the community participants and district officers sharing their perception of climate change impacts, before discussion turned to potential personal and collective responses at adaptation and mitigation.

With regards to mainstreaming, officials indicated that although climate change issues are not treated separately in planning and budgeting processes, the challenge arises with the integration process due to the low levels of awareness of climate change and perceived.  Mr Nelson highlighted the opportunities to secure extra-budgetary adaptation funding if climate change is effectively mainstreamed.

DECCMA team participates in FAO Regional Meeting in Ghana

by Prosper Adiku

DECCMA was invited to make a presentation at the Food and Agriculture Organisation Regional Meeting held in Akosombo, Ghana from November 20-24, 2017; and hosted a field visit to the Volta delta.

FAO’s is committed to promoting rural agricultural development. Migration currently has a negative impact on agriculture by taking away economically-active adults, and so the intention is to make agriculture attractive.

Dr Mumuni Abu presents migration findings from the Volta delta

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Lead of the migration work in Ghana, Dr Mumuni Abu, was invited to share DECCMA’s findings on climate change and migration in the Volta delta, as well as to discuss how to leverage the opportunities presented by FAO in collaborating for further studies. He shared information on who migrants in the delta are, reasons for migrating, where the migrants go to, the duration of migration and the general perception of people about migration.

As part of the meeting programme, the DECCMA team hosted a visit to the Keta Municipality to learn about the interactions between climate change, migration and agriculture in the delta. The team interacted with officials of the District Assembly through presentations and discussions on climate change and agriculture-related issues in the Municipality and how these are impacting on the lives of the people. Officials from the planning department, Community development workers and the Information Services Department of the Assembly as well as DECCMA representatives were present during the interactions.

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DECCMA and ASSAR present at UNU-WIDER Development Conference in Ghana

by Prosper Adiku, DECCMA Ghana RiU focal point

On October 6th, Kwasi Appeaning-Addo participated at the UNU-WIDER Development Conference held in Accra.

The UNU-WIDER Conference, held under the theme ‘Migration and mobility- new frontiers for research and policy’ was jointly organised by the UNU-WIDER and the African Research Universities Alliance (ARUA). The 2-day conference comprised plenary, parallel sessions with contributed papers, and a poster session. The conference explored the relationships between migration, mobility, and development, with a focus on South-South movements and the African region. It aimed to bring together new and innovative research from economics and other disciplines that can inform broader policy-relevant debate and action.

UNU WIDER conference

Profs. Chris Gordon (2nd L) and Appeaning-Addo (2nd R) at the Environment and Natural Resources parallel session of the Conference (Photograph credit: Wendy Boakye)

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Presenting on DECCMA’s findings on migration and mobility across deltas, Professor Appeaning-Addo was part of the “Environment and Natural Resources” parallel session chaired by Linguère Mously Mbaye. The Collaborative Adaptation Research in Africa and Asia programme was also represented by Professor Chris Gordon of Adaptation at Scale in Arid and Semi-arid land (ASSAR). Drawing together their findings on deltas and semi-arid lands in Ghana, DECCMA and ASSAR jointly developed a research brief ‘Migration: An Opportunity or Threat to Adaptation?’ which was available at the conference.

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University of Ghana

Prof. Samuel Nii Ardey Codjoe

scodjoe@ug.edu.gh

Sam CodjoeProf. Samuel Nii Ardey Codjoe is an Associate Professor of Population Studies and the Director of the Regional Institute for Population Studies (RIPS), University of Ghana, Legon. His research areas include population-environment nexus, migration, fertility, climate change/variability and its impact on urban and rural livelihoods.  Prof. Codjoe is the PI for Ghana on the DECCMA Project.

Prof. Kwasi Appeaning Addo

kappeaningaddo@ug.edu.gh

Kwasi Appeaning Addo newProf. Kwasi Appeaning Addo is a senior lecturer in coastal processes in the Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana. His research areas include coastal vulnerability index to sea level rise, coastal erosion, climate change impacts, and shoreline change monitoring. Kwasi has published extensively in his area of research.  Prof. Appeanning Addo is the Deputy PI for Ghana on the DECCMA Project.

Gertrude Domfeh Owusu

geowusu@ug.edu.gh

Gertrude Domfeh newGertrude Owusu holds an MA in International Studies (specialisation – Women and Development) from Ewha Woman’s University in South Korea. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Sociology with Linguistics from the University of Ghana, Legon.  She has previously worked with ABANTU for Development, a gender rights and policy advocacy organisation, as the Governance Programme Manager. As part of the DECCMA team, she is responsible for co-ordinating the day-to-day activities of work packages within the DECCMA project in Ghana.

Dr Clifford Amoako

camoako.cap@knust.edu.gh

Clifford Amoako JohnsonDr. Clifford Amoako is a lecturer at the Department of Planning, KNUST- Kumasi, Ghana. He holds a PhD in Geography and Environmental Science from Monash University (Melbourne, Australia) and an M.Phil degree in Planning from The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, the same university where he obtained his B.Sc. Planning with First Class Honours.

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His research and professional persuasions, which date back to 2001, have been in urban and regional development planning, contemporary issues in climate change adaptation, community vulnerability and emerging responses to climate variability. He is capable of blending participatory appraisal techniques with structured methodologies to elicit stakeholder concerns on development projects in both urban and rural settings. He has full understanding of both local and international legislations/protocols and concepts that guide the preparation of Environmental Impact Assessments and Project Monitoring and Evaluation systems.  Clifford comes on board as the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) expert for the six work packages under the DECCMA project in the Volta Delta in Ghana. His key contribution is to produce and help implement an M&E system that defines standards, tracks project approaches and methods; and ensures participatory monitoring and evaluation of project achievements, results and impacts by all stakeholders. In achieving these tasks, he plays a catalyst role to support building M&E capacity, and together with the project team in Ghana, implement the M&E system, recommending adjustments to project efforts where necessary.

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Dr Cynthia Addoquaye Tagoe

caddoquayetagoe@ug.edu.gh

Cynthia Addoquaye Tagoe newDr. Cynthia Addoquaye Tagoe is a Research Fellow at the Institute of Statistical, Social and Economic Research (ISSER) at the University of Ghana, Legon. Her research interests and experience are in migration, decentralisation, participatory approaches to governance, institutions and gender issues.

 

 

Prosper Adiku

prosperyaw@cariaa.net

Prosper Adiku newProsper Adiku holds an MPhil (Oceanography) from the Marine & Fisheries Sciences Department of the University of Ghana. Prosper is interested in vulnerability & hazard (flood) mapping, and Science Communications. He is the Technical Officer for the ‘Promoting Research into Use through Networking and Engagement’ (PRUNE) under the Ghana Country Engagement Group (G-CEG) of CARIAA. His main role is to support the implementation of the RiU strategies for the CARIAA consortia (ASSAR & DECCMA) in Ghana.

Dr. Barnabas Amisigo

barnyy2002@yahoo.co.uk

Barnabas Amisigo newDr. Barnabas Amisigo is a Hydrologist/Water Resources Engineer with interests in hydrological modelling and integrated Water Resources Planning and management research, modelling the impacts of climate and environmental change on river basin water resources, data assimilation in hydrology, operational streamflow forecasting and flood and drought risk assessments in river basins. Dr Amisigo is the Ghana lead on Work Package 5 on the DECCMA Project.

Dr Mumuni Abu

mabu@ug.edu.gh

Mumuni Abu newDr. Mumuni Abu is a lecturer at the Regional Institute for Population Studies (RIPS), University of Ghana, where he teaches and provides mentorship to students in the area of technical and social demography. His interest areas are population projections and estimations; climate change, migration and health.  Dr Abu is a research scientist  working on Work Package 3 on the DECCMA project.

 

Dr. Benjamin Kofi Nyarko

bnyarko@ucc.edu.gh

Benjamin Nyarko newDr. Benjamin Kofi Nyarko is a Senior Lecturer and a Physical Geographer at the Department of Geography & Regional Planning, University of Cape Coast. His research interest is in fluvial geomorphology and application of spatial techniques in fluvial dynamics.  Dr Nyarko will be working on Work Package 5 on the DECCMA Project.

 

Dr Emmanuel Ekow Asmah

easmah@ucc.edu.gh

Emmanuel Ekow AsmahBeyond working as a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Economics, UCC for the past fifteen years, Dr. Emmanuel Ekow Asmah is a visiting lecturer and a network member of the Africa Economic Research Consortium and has in the past worked with the Africa Growth Initiative at Brookings (US) as a Research Fellow and an Intern Macroeconomist with the World Bank Tanzania Office.

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His broad interests are in the Drivers of Development in Africa, mainly using household survey data and SAM-Based Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) Modelling Approaches. On the DECCMA project, Dr. Asmah supports the Work Package 4 team involved in the economic modelling of the impacts of climate change, with specific tasks ranging from the construction and calibration of delta level input-output (IO) to assistance in the prediction of prices of tradeable agricultural commodities and other key outputs under different climate scenarios for 2030, 2060 and 2100.

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Dr. Prince Osei-Wusu Adjei

poadjei.cass@knust.edu.gh

PrinceDr. Prince Osei-Wusu Adjei holds a PhD in Geography and Rural Development. His research interest and experiences are on Local Governance and Rural Development, Livelihoods and Poverty Studies.  He is currently a Lecturer at the Department of Geography and Rural Development, KNUST, Kumasi, Ghana.  Dr Adjei is the Ghana lead on Work Package 4 on the DECCMA Project.

 

Dr. Joseph Kwadwo Asenso

joekas75@yahoo.com

Joseph AsensoDr. Joseph Asenso is the Head of the Energy/Oil and Gas Unit of the Real Sector Division, Ministry of Finance. He is responsible for the annual projection of the Government’s petroleum revenue, reporting on petroleum revenues and general coordination of petroleum revenue-related activities. He also coordinates the national GDP projection exercise.  Dr Asenso will be focusing on Work Package 4 on the DECCMA Project.

 

Francisca Martey

f.martey@meteo.gov.gh

Francisca MarteyMrs. Francisca Martey is a Senior Meteorologist and Researcher in the Research Department of the Ghana Meteorological Agency and has expertise on issues of climate change, climate variabilities and climate scenarios in Ghana. She is also interested in Numerical Weather Prediction models for nowcasting and seasonal forecasting.  Francisca is working on Work Package 2 on the DECCMA project.

 

Winfred Nelson

winfrednelson@yahoo.co.uk

Winfred Nelson newMr. Winfred A. Nelson holds an MPhil Degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK and is a member of the Ghana Institute of Planners. He is currently a Deputy Director at the National Development Planning Commission, responsible for the mainstreaming of environment issues into the national development planning and budgeting processes. Winfred will be working on Work Package 1 on the DECCMA project.

 

Dr. Adelina Mensah

ammensah@staff.ug.edu.gh

Adelina Mensah newDr. Adelina Mensah is a Research Fellow at the Institute for Environment and Sanitation Studies, University of Ghana. Her main areas of research include the varying complexities of inland and coastal aquatic systems, including inter-linkages with socio-economic drivers and sustainable management; and vulnerability and adaptation to climate change.  Dr Mensah is the Work Package 6 Lead for Ghana on the DECCMA Project.

 

Prof. Ofori-Danson Patrick Kwabena

ofdan@ug.edu.gh

Ofori Danson Patrick Kwabena newProf. Ofori-Danson is a fisheries resource scientist with an interest in fisheries assessment and management.   He was awarded the 2010 best teacher award for the sciences from the University of Ghana.  As a member of the National Biodiversity Committee he has been involved in many policy decisions concerned with aquatic wildlife conservation issues to the Ghana government.  Prof. Kwabena is working on Work Package 4 on the DECCMA Project.

 

 

Philip-Neri Jayson Quashigah

pnjquashigah@gmail.com

Philip Neri Jayson Quashigah newPhilip-Neri Jayson-Quashigah is a PhD student in the Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences, University of Ghana, with skills in coastal zone monitoring using remote sensing and GIS. He holds an MPhil in Environmental Science and is currently researching on delta morphodynamics on the DECCMA Project.

 

 

Donatus Yaw Atiglo

yawatiglo@gmail.com

Donatus Yaw Atiglo is a PhD student in Population Studies at the Regional Institute for Population Studies, University of Ghana, with research experience on gendered dynamics and reproductive health. His current research interests include vulnerability to environmental change, trapped populations, migration and gendered population dynamics on the DECCMA Project.

 

Kirk Anderson

kandersongh@gmail.com

Kirk Anderson newKirk Anderson is a demographer with eight years experience, particularly in the area of fertility. He is a PhD candidate on the DECCMA Project with research interest in the climate change adaptation options available to individuals within the Volta Delta in the context of demographic, cultural and socio-economic change.

 

Jennifer Ayamga

jennega@yahoo.com

Jennifer Ayamga new

Jennifer Ayamga holds an MPhil in Environmental Science and is currently a PhD candidate in Environmental Science on the DECCMA project. Her research interest is in climate change and integrated assessment of sensitivity, exposures of communities and their adaptive capacity of socio-economic and biophysical systems to climate change in the Volta Delta.

 

Ruth Quaye

ruthquay@gmail.com

Ruth Quaye newRuth M. Quaye holds an MPhil in Climate Change and Sustainable Development from the University of Ghana.  Her main areas of interest include climate change adaptation, institutions, gender and sustainable development.  Ruth is currently working with Work Package 1 of the DECCMA Ghana Project as a Research Assistant.

 

Gwendolene Asare-Konadu

gwen.asarekonadu@gmail.com

Gwendolene Asare KonaduGwendolene Asare-Konadu is a member of the Association of Certified Chartered Accountants (ACCA) and Institute of Chartered Accountants Ghana (ICAG). She has worked on several donor-funded projects and has been responsible for multi-funded budgets ranging from $10,000 to $1,400,000. She is currently on the DECCMA team as Project Accountant.

Ghanaian DECCMA Stakeholder meet in Accra

On the 20th of October 2016, the DECCMA Ghana Team held a one-day Workshop for National Level Stakeholders at the Kofi Anan ICT Centre in Accra. A total of 52 participants made up of policy makers and technical experts from the Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) with representation from Parliament and the Attorney General’s Department attended the workshop aimed at validating the Governance Analysis Report of the DECCMA Work Package 6.

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ghanaian stakeholder meet

Prof. Samuel Codjoe

In a clear departure from the usual mode of organising workshops, a skit was performed by actors from the University of Ghana’s School of Performing Arts to introduce participants to the workshop as well as outline the objectives of the DECCMA project. Professor Samuel Codjoe, the DECCMA Ghana PI welcomed participants to the workshop in a brief statement. A brief statement was also delivered by Mrs. Joy Poane, the Monitoring Officer of the Ghana Office of the International Organisation of Migration (IOM).

The increasing vulnerabilities of the deltaic areas was reiterated using the drone footage in combination with a short presentation. Similar to the District level engagement, the participants at the Workshop brainstormed on terminologies related to maladaptation and successful adaptation. Stakeholders at the meeting also evaluated the Barriers to implementation and the Adaptation Pathways for the Delta. The barriers to the implementation of policies as well as the successful adaptation surveys were also administered.

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Sharing Research Experiences: The CARIAA Ghana example

sharing research experiences

Sharing research experiences

Research into Use (RiU) is a key tool in the CARIAA Theory of Change (ToC) for engagements through the project cycle to the dissemination of research products with the objective of influencing changes in development, adaptation policy and practice. The CARIAA Ghana projects; Adaptation at Scale in Semi-Arid Regions (ASSAR) and Deltas, vulnerability, Climate Change: Migration and Adaptation (DECCMA) seized the opportunity presented during the recent Climate Change and Population Conference on Africa (CCPOP Ghana2016) to share their experiences in the use of RiU strategies as part of their research activities.

The annual CCPOP, organized by the Regional Institute of Population Studies (RIPS) of the University of Ghana is a trans-disciplinary conference that brings together scientists from all over the world in a bid to promote lessons on the best scientific practices with potential development impacts on Africa. Inspired by the active orientation of the discourse around climate change and Ghana’s commitment to the iNDCs, this year’s Conference focused on Research-Into-Use (RiU), policy frameworks and intervention projects that have made a difference in climate change mitigation or adaption efforts hence the theme: “Building bridges and Research into-Use”. The conference drew participants from policy, research, national institutions and the academia including student poster presentations.

The moderated RiU panel which run parallel to other sessions was held at the auditorium of the Nogouchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) under the theme RiU in action: Before, During and after the Research and drew over fifty (50) participants from policy, research and the academia including the Vice Chancellor of the Regional Maritime University and a former head of the Department of Marine and Fisheries Sciences of the University of Ghana, Professor E. Nyarko.

The panel shared with the audience how the ASSAR (Lawra and Nandom districts) and the DECCMA (Volta delta) projects are using RiU and other stakeholder engagements process to improve the understanding of vulnerability, wellbeing and adaptation issues in their respective study areas. Through the use of videos and oral interaction, the discussants illustrated how CARIAA approaches its research differently by keeping RiU central to the concept of its TOC. Specifically, the use of participatory tools such as the Vulnerability Risk Assessment (VRA) and the Transformative Scenario Planning (TSP) processes were explained. The use of innovative tools/techniques to communicate vulnerability to impacts was also stressed using the DECCMA drone footage of Fuveme (a flooding coastal community) as an example.

The Oxfam Ghana (Tamale) advocacy Officer and the Deputy Municipal Officer of the Keta Municipality who respectively are from the research areas of ASSAR and DECCMA also shared their views of how to effectively partner with institutions and the local communities to successfully execute projects. The discussions also showed practical examples of appropriate two-way collaboration between vulnerable communities and scientific research teams and, highlighted effective tools for communicating climate change adaptation to local communities.

Generally, the audience were enthused about the innovative attempt and willingness on the side of the CARIAA consortia to share information with other practitioners. The audience also emphasized the need for increased collaboration between the research community and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that have presence in the study communities for a more holistic engagement.

See here for news on the Conference and Photos

Training of Enumerators for Sending Area Survey in the Volta Delta, Ghana

training of enumerators

Training of enumerators

DECCMA Ghana Work Package Three (WP3) has trained 30 Field Enumerators (FEs) and 6 Supervisors for the Sending Area Household Surveys in the Volta Delta. The Sending Area Survey involves some 1500 households in 50 Enumeration Areas (EAs) across 9 Administrative Districts within the Volta Delta stretching from Prampram in the Greater Accra region to Aflao in the Volta region.

The DECCMA project is aimed at analysing the impacts of climate change and other environmental drivers across deltas in Africa and Asia. This Household survey together with other participatory research and economic methods will be used to analyse the processes of migration across the deltas.

The four-day (3-6 May) training held at the Regional Institute for Population Studies (RIPS) of the University of Ghana took participants through the survey instruments, the Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) as well as a pilot survey in Oshiyie near Kokrobite in Accra. The training covered specific areas with respect to data collection such as community entry, questionnaire administration, as well as safety on the field. The enumerators were also taken through the various sections of the Household Head and Individual Questionnaires.
Following a thorough discussion of the various sections of the questionnaires in the hard copy format, the FEs formed three groups according to the languages spoken in the study area (Ewe, Ga/Dangbe and Twi). After several bouts of translation exercises and role plays, the Computer Aided Personal Interviewer (CAPI) was introduced and similar role play sessions carried out. At this point, a number of omissions and errors were detected while additional comments and suggestions were made on how to improve the final instrument.

On the final day of training, the FEs together with the trainers visited a fishing community along the coast of Accra and carried out a 4 hour pilot interview with members of the Oshiyie Community following the regular protocols of community entry which included a visit to the Chief of the town.

To ensure that the data collected meet the highest standards for synchronization and comparison with data from other Deltas, a Survey Structure which consists of an apex Survey Headquarters (based at RIPS), Supervisors and finally the Field Enumerators at the base was put in place. The Supervisors are directly in charge of all field operations including daily assignment of surveys to enumerators, community entry, editing, approval, collation and onward transmission of data to the Survey Headquarters who have final authority in accepting or rejecting completed instruments submitted through the Supervisors.

Beyond the three main elements of the structure, there are also a standby Teams of Observers and Monitors who would carry out regular visits to field teams to observe their work, make suggestions to Supervisors as well as the Headquarters on the progress of work among others.

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